| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Durand Ridge, Duck Fall, Salmacis Fall, Upper Inlook, Dome Rock, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Airline Trail, Airline Cutoff, Valley Way, Lower Bruin, Brookside Trail, Kelton Trail, Inlook Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Wednesday, July 6, 2022 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Parked at Appalachia parking area off US 2 in Randolph. This large, paved lot has a kiosk, no privy. AMC shuttle stop. Free parking. Ample roadside parking available in snow free seasons. Lot was 3/4 full today. Many cars parked with too much space between them. If everyone parked like a parking lot this could have saved several spaces for others… |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Wet Trail, Wet/Slippery Rock |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
All water crossings taken with care. Though water levels did not present a threat, the slick, algae covered rocks did. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
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 | Bugs: |
Ah… Finally. A break from the bitting buggahs!! |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
Initial plan was to try and grab Washington and Monroe… but the wind gods would not cooperate. Last second plan change to try and get Mt Adams. That didn’t work either. Luckily, we could grab some awesome sights a lower elevations along the Presidential Range.
Route:
Airline > Airline Cutoff > Valley Way > Lower Bruin Trail > Brookside Trail > Kelton Trail > Inlook Trail > Valley Way > end.
Airline: nicely blazed in blue. All signs up, legible to the Airline Cutoff trail. Footbed simple to follow. Lots and lots of slick, wet rocks. I’ve never been on this trail without snow. Total new experience. I’d rather hike it in snow… We made it up Durand Ridge with limited visibility, focusing on the large carins and faded blue blazes to keep us from the edges. The wind just above the ridge (about 4800 feet) pinned us down. AMC’s weather report stated winds were 40-60 MPH. I would concur that these must have been the wind speeds. We got thrown by the wind against a large carin about 50 feet from the end of Durand Ridge when we looked at each other and yelled, “Oh hell no!” We promptly scrambled back to the Cutoff.
Airline Cutoff: not blazed, simple to follow footbed. Trail is in scrub providing much appreciated protection from the wind. Wet trail.
Valley Way: sheltered route nearly to the door of Madison Hut (open, bathrooms, potable water). Apparently, I have also never been here without snow. I was so frustrated having to slowly negotiate the steep, wet rocks. I kept yelling to my son, “If I had my snowshoes I’d have been at the bottom by now!” Oh it took forever to get to the Lower Bruin junction…
Lower Bruin: cute, 0.2 Mile, yellow blazed route to junction with Watson Path/ Brookside Trail. Slow going with all the wet rocks and roots. Trekking poles a life saver. Much faster the winter I did it in fresh snow… Oh that was a fun time!
Brookside Trail: well blazed in updated yellow blazes. This portion of the trail is much more rough and steep than the lower portions. Lots of time spent carefully negotiating the wet rocks and roots. Footbed simple to follow. Falls stupendous and worth the detour. Quiet trail.
Kelton Trail: I am in love with this trail, well, at least the upper portion anyway. Blazed in updated yellow blazes, this soft foot trail follows the 2600 foot contour on the slopes of Mt Madison. It is gorgeous. Gentle grades. Fantastic woods. One tiny water point on trail, but one could filter water from this at the time of this writing. Upper Inlook has a surprising view.
Inlook Trail: I can’t remember if it’s blazed. I know there are nice carins on all ledges. This trail is moderately graded with many ledges affording lovely views of East Randolph and the sides of Mt Madison and Mt Adams from both the Upper Inlook and Dome Rock viewpoints. There are also several other restricted viewpoints along the trail. This trail reminded me of Maine. *Sigh* The views are quite surprising. We had no issues following the trail. Footbed is soft; aside from the many slick, short ledges. Final water crossing over Snyder Brook no issue.
The mantra holds; “If given a Presi day, you take it.” Otherwise, go explore the plethora of lower elevation trails!!. |
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 | Name: |
Remington34 |
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 | E-Mail: |
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| Date Submitted: |
2022-07-06 |
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 | Link: |
 https:// |
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Disclaimer: Reports are not verified - conditions may vary. Use at own risk. Always be prepared when hiking. Observe all signs. Trail conditions reports are not substitutes for weather reports or common sense. |
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